My girlfriend (26F) and I (23M) just landed $170k/yr jobs as paid travelers for a large construction project. How can we make the most of this opportunity?
Currently we each make around $85k in a moderate cost-of-living area. Rent + utilities are $2,600/month, and we have no savings and only a few thousand in our 401(k)’s.
We’ll be relocating in the next few weeks to an area with similar costs. Budgeting about $3,000/month for rent + utilities. As paid travelers, we can’t own property without losing our per diem, which is about $5k/month untaxed each. So investing in real estate isn’t a possibility.
The contract is minimum 2 years with current work planned for 4. Though they do plan on acquiring additional scope over time and could easily be out there for several years.
Current situation:
GF is debt free but will need a new (used) car.
I recently financed $30k on a new car (~$550/m) after putting 50% down. I’m 1 year into the (60 month) loan and plan to pay this off first.
I’m assuming maxing out my 401(k) should be a priority.
Outside of saving as much as possible, what should our priorities be? What goals should I make?
GF and I have been together for 3.5 years and I plan to get engaged. Not sure if being married helps with taxes or hurts, so any suggestions on that would be appreciated too. I manage both our finances, so consider our incomes as one.
Obviously this is a life changing amount of money. I just want to make the most of it. Thanks for the help.